Gillian Keegan

Gillian Keegan (née Gibson; born 13 March 1968)[3] is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Education since 2022. She previously served as Minister of State for Care and Mental Health from 2021 to 2022, and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa from September to October 2022. Keegan has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Chichester since 2017. She is a member of the Conservative Party.

The Right Honourable
Gillian Keegan
MP
Official portrait, 2022
Secretary of State for Education
Assumed office
25 October 2022
Prime MinisterRishi Sunak
Preceded byKit Malthouse
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa
In office
8 September 2022 – 25 October 2022
Prime MinisterLiz Truss
Preceded byVicky Ford
Succeeded byAndrew Mitchell[lower-alpha 1]
Minister of State for Care and Mental Health
In office
16 September 2021 – 7 September 2022
Prime MinisterBoris Johnson
Preceded byHelen Whately[lower-alpha 2]
Nadine Dorries[lower-alpha 3]
Succeeded byRobert Jenrick[lower-alpha 4]
Caroline Johnson[lower-alpha 5]
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Apprenticeships and Skills
In office
14 February 2020 – 16 September 2021
Prime MinisterBoris Johnson
Preceded byAnne Milton
Succeeded byAlex Burghart
Member of Parliament
for Chichester
Assumed office
8 June 2017
Preceded byAndrew Tyrie
Majority21,490 (35.1%)
Member of Chichester District Council
for Rogate
In office
23 October 2014 – 12 April 2018
Preceded byJohn Kingston
Succeeded byKate O'Kelly
Personal details
Born (1968-03-13) 13 March 1968[1][2]
Leigh, Lancashire, England
Political partyConservative
SpouseMichael Keegan
RelativesDenis Keegan (father-in-law)
Residence(s)Petworth, West Sussex, England
Alma materLiverpool John Moores University
London Business School
Websitegilliankeegan.com

Keegan grew up in Huyton, Merseyside. She studied at Liverpool John Moores University and London Business School. She held senior positions in various business sectors, including as chief marketing officer for Travelport.

Keegan was a councillor on Chichester District Council from 2014 to 2018. She was elected to Parliament for Chichester at the 2017 general election. She was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Apprenticeships and Skills in the February 2020 reshuffle by Boris Johnson. In the 2021 cabinet reshuffle, Johnson promoted her to Minister of State for Care and Mental Health. She was demoted to Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa when Liz Truss was appointed Prime Minister in September 2022. In October 2022, she was appointed Secretary of State for Education by new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Early life

Keegan was born in Leigh, Lancashire,[4] to an office manager father and a mother who did secretarial work.[5] She went to primary school in Yorkshire.[4] She grew up in Knowsley, Merseyside (Knowsley was in Lancashire up until 1974), and went to St Augustine of Canterbury Secondary School in Huyton. She was the only pupil to get 10 O-Levels at her school.[5]

She has a bachelor's degree in Business Studies from Liverpool John Moores University and graduated as a Master of Science in Strategy and Leadership (Sloan Fellowship) from the London Business School in 2011.[6]

Professional career

Keegan started her career aged 16 as an apprentice at the then AC Delco motor vehicle components factory in Kirkby and continued to have a business career working at Delco Electronics (part of the General Motors Group), NatWest Bank (senior buyer), MasterCard International (commercial director), Amadeus IT Group (group vice president of Multinational Customer Group based in Madrid) and Travelport (chief marketing officer)[7] for over 27 years.

Political career

Keegan has said that it was her experiences of trade unionism and the Militant-controlled Liverpool City Council while working in Kirkby in her youth during the 1980s that convinced her to support the Conservative Party. However, she did not become active in politics until 2014.[8] In 2015, she was advised to become an MP by Justine Greening, whom she met by chance at a London Business School (LBS) reunion; according to her, this demonstrated the power of the LBS network.[9]

Keegan's father-in-law was the late Conservative MP Denis Keegan. She unsuccessfully contested the constituency of St Helens South and Whiston at the 2015 general election. In 2015 she became director of Women2Win—an organisation founded by Theresa May and Anne Jenkin, Baroness Jenkin of Kennington in 2005 to help elect more women Conservative MPs to Parliament.[10] She had left that position by September 2017.[11]

Keegan was elected as a councillor for the Rogate ward on Chichester District Council in 2014.[12] She was appointed cabinet member for commercial services in May 2015.[13] She stood down as a councillor in February 2018 and in the election that followed in April 2018, the seat was taken by the Liberal Democrat candidate Kate O'Kelly.[14] Keegan went on to beat O'Kelly by 21,490 votes at the 2019 general election.

Keegan was selected as the Conservative Parliamentary candidate for Chichester in May 2017,[10] and was elected to the House of Commons at the 2017 general election.[15] She is the constituency's first female MP.[12] In September 2017, she was appointed to the Public Accounts Committee.[16]

In February 2019, Keegan was appointed as MP Apprenticeship Ambassador by Anne Milton, with responsibility to support apprenticeship schemes and promote them both within Parliament and to businesses within the UK, working alongside the Apprenticeship Ambassador Network consisting of various advocates of apprenticeship schemes.[17][18]

Junior ministerial roles

Keegan was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to HM Treasury in September 2018.[19] In January 2019, she became PPS to the Secretary of State for Defence.[20] She became PPS to the Home Secretary in May 2019.[21] She endorsed Rory Stewart during the 2019 Conservative Party leadership election.[22] She became PPS to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care in September 2019.

In February 2020, Keegan was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Apprenticeships and Skills, a junior ministerial role at the Department for Education,[23] and was the first former apprentice to hold the office.[24]

In August 2020, Keegan was criticised for being on holiday during the GCSE and A-level grading controversy. She defended herself by stating that she was not the minister responsible for A-level and GCSE qualifications. She said that although she had been the duty minister for the first two weeks of summer recess, she had obtained special permission to take her government computer with her to continue working during this period.[25]

In the September 2021 reshuffle, Keegan was appointed Minister of State for Care and Mental Health.[26][27] During the July 2022 United Kingdom government crisis, Keegan did not respond to a press enquiry by the Chichester Observer to comment on her decision not to resign. Following the announcement by Boris Johnson that he intended to resign as party leader, Keegan released a statement in which she praised the prime minister's leadership and announced that she would remain a minister in his government.[28]

Keegan endorsed Rishi Sunak in the July–September 2022 Conservative Party leadership election[29] and was subsequently demoted when Liz Truss became Prime Minister in September 2022, serving as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa.

Education Secretary
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak meets Secretary of State for Education Gillian Keegan in 2022.

Keegan endorsed Sunak again in the October 2022 Conservative Party leadership election and was appointed Secretary of State for Education.[30] She was sworn as a member of the Privy Council on 27 October 2022.[31]

On 5 January 2023, Keegan represented the British government at the funeral of Pope Benedict XVI.[32]

In July 2023, Keegan was reported to have suggested that headteachers should collect absent pupils from home in order to return them to school.[33] Some school leaders have criticised her.[34]

Following an interview on 4 September 2023 with ITV News about the RAAC crisis in a number of schools in England, Keegan, believing the recording had ended, remarked, “Does anyone ever say ‘you know what, you’ve done a fucking good job [be]cause everyone else has sat on their arse and done nothing’? No signs of that, no?” She later apologised for using profanity and described it as “off the cuff" and "unnecessary".[35][36][37] Keegan said that she did not expect to be personally thanked for her performance and that it was instead a reference to the Department for Education’s “leadership role” in the crisis. Earlier that day, it was revealed that the DfE had spent £32 million refurbishing its office space in Whitehall. During an interview, Keegan appeared to be unaware of these costs.[38][39]

Personal life

Keegan lives in Petworth in West Sussex with her second husband, Michael, and has two stepsons.[40]

Michael Keegan is currently employed as a crown representative to the Cabinet Office, managing cross-government relationships with BAE Systems as a strategic supplier to the Government.[41] He is a non-executive director of the technology company Centerprise.[42]

Keegan's father-in-law, Denis Keegan, was Conservative MP for Nottingham South.[43] Keegan and her husband jointly own a flat in London and a property in France.[44]

Notes
  1. As Minister of State for Development and Africa.
  2. As Minister of State for Social Care.
  3. As Minister of State for Patient Safety, Suicide Prevention and Mental Health.
  4. As Minister of State for Health.
  5. As Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Mental Health and Public Health.

References
  1. "Gillian Keegan: 'Militant trade unionists turned me Tory after I saw how it cost us jobs'". The Sunday Telegraph. 7 May 2017. Archived from the original on 14 November 2018. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
  2. Dale, Iain; Smith, Jacqui (14 November 2019). The Honourable Ladies: Volume II: Profiles of Women MPs 1997–2019. Biteback Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78590-447-9. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 27 November 2020 – via Google Books.
  3. Andrew, Andrew (5 September 2023). "Gillian Keegan Biography: the Apprentice Who Became Education Secretary". rallshe. Retrieved 5 September 2023.
  4. "About Gillian". Gillian Keegan. Archived from the original on 16 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  5. "Profile: Gillian Keegan". FE Week. Archived from the original on 16 February 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  6. "Gillian Keegan". Women2win.com. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  7. "Gillian Gibson Named to Travelport Post". Travel Agent Central (Press release). Questex. 18 January 2011. Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  8. Riley-Smith, Ben (6 May 2017). "'Theresa factor' credited with surge in women candidates as party looks set to make history by securing more women MPs than ever before". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 9 April 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  9. "Gillian Keegan". London Business School. Archived from the original on 15 October 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  10. Wallace, Mark (2 May 2017). "Keegan selected in Chichester". ConservativeHome. Archived from the original on 8 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  11. "Gillian Keegan MP featured in The Times 'Back to Westminster' series". Women2win.com. 11 September 2017. Archived from the original on 1 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  12. "Conservative's bid to be Chichester's first female MP". Chichester Observer. 3 May 2017. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  13. "New cabinet is announced at Chichester District Council". Chichester District Council. Archived from the original on 14 October 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  14. "District councillor elected for Rogate". Chichester Observer. 13 April 2018. Archived from the original on 14 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  15. "Parliamentary career for Gillian Keegan". UK Parliament. Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  16. "Membership – Public Accounts Committee". UK Parliament. Archived from the original on 18 November 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  17. "A REVOLUTION ON THE SOUTH COAST – UNIVERSITY OPENS TO DEGREE APPRENTICES". University of Chichester. 5 March 2019. Archived from the original on 27 April 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  18. "Chichester MP appointed as Apprenticeship Ambassador". Chichester Observer. 15 February 2019. Archived from the original on 15 February 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  19. Powling, Joshua (13 September 2018). "Chichester MP promoted to treasury role". Chichester Observer. Archived from the original on 26 October 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  20. "Ministry of Defence role for Chichester MP". Chichester Observer. 11 January 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  21. "Parliamentary Private Secretaries" (PDF). GOV.UK. June 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 July 2019. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
  22. Powling, Joshua (12 June 2019). "Chichester's MP announces who she is backing for Tory leader". Chichester Observer. Archived from the original on 12 June 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  23. Camden, Billy (17 February 2020). "Gillian Keegan appointed apprenticeships and skills minister". FE Week. Archived from the original on 25 July 2020. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  24. Careers and Enterprise Company (10 February 2021). "Five young women set out their stall for improving apprenticeship take-up with Skills Minister Gillian Keegan". FE News. Archived from the original on 11 February 2021. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  25. Powling, Joshua (27 August 2020). "Chichester MP explains decision to go abroad on holiday during exam season". Sussex Express. Archived from the original on 28 August 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2020.
  26. "Minister of State (Minister for Care)". GOV.UK. Archived from the original on 22 September 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
  27. "Ministerial appointments: September 2021". GOV.UK. 16 September 2021. Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  28. Joshua Powling (7 July 2022). "Chichester MP responds to Boris Johnson's resignation and will remain in government". Chichester Observer. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  29. "Gillian backs Rishi Sunak for Leader". gilliankeegan.com/.
  30. "Gillian Keegan MP". GOV.UK. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  31. "ORDERS APPROVED AND BUSINESS TRANSACTED AT THE PRIVY COUNCIL HELD BY THE KING AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE ON 27TH OCTOBER 2022" (PDF). Privycouncil.independent.gov.uk. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  32. Etchingham, Julie (5 January 2023). "The sound of Bavarian drumming fills the air ahead of Pope's funeral". ITV News. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
  33. "Headteachers should pick up truants from their homes, says Gillian Keegan". The Daily Telegraph. 14 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  34. "Education secretary accused of being 'flippant' over absent pupils in England". The Guardian. 14 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  35. "Gillian Keegan recorded saying others 'have been sat on their a***s' on school Raac crisis". ITV News. 4 September 2023.
  36. "Gillian Keegan caught saying 'everyone else has sat on arse' over concrete crisis". The Guardian. 4 September 2023.
  37. Whammel, Kate (4 September 2023). "Gillian Keegan apologises for swearing over school concrete crisis". BBC News. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  38. "Education Secretary Gillian Keegan 'didn't know' about £32m spending on departmental office refurbishment". Sky News. 4 September 2023.
  39. Kate Nicholson (4 September 2023). "Kay Burley Calls Out Education Secretary Over Department's Alleged £34m Refurb As Schools Crumble". HuffPost.
  40. "About Gillian: Gillian Keegan". 23 December 2022. Archived from the original on 23 December 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  41. "Cabinet Office denies conflict over crown rep's role at MoD supplier". Civil Service World. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
  42. "Michael Geoffrey KEEGAN". Companies House. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  43. "Economy and Jobs – Hansard". UK Parliament. 29 June 2017. Archived from the original on 2 August 2017. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  44. "Register of Interests for Gillian Keegan MP". UK Parliament. 7 November 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
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